{"id":41211,"date":"2021-06-24T19:30:27","date_gmt":"2021-06-24T11:30:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.99.co\/singapore\/insider\/?p=41211"},"modified":"2022-06-13T17:27:22","modified_gmt":"2022-06-13T09:27:22","slug":"mnd-survey-reveals-how-the-government-could-regulate-prime-location-hdb-flats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.99.co\/singapore\/insider\/mnd-survey-reveals-how-the-government-could-regulate-prime-location-hdb-flats\/","title":{"rendered":"MND survey reveals how the government could regulate prime location HDB flats"},"content":{"rendered":"
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It\u2019s an open secret that buying a Build-to-Order (BTO) flat directly from HDB is almost as good as getting \u201cfree money\u201d, because these flats are sold to Singaporeans at a discount to market value.<\/em><\/p>\n

In recent times, we\u2019re increasingly hearing the term \u201cwindfall effect\u201d or \u201clottery effect\u201d, which describes the significant profit that BTO flat owners get when they sell their new-ish flats upon completion of the five-year Minimum Occupation Period (MOP).<\/p>\n

Such profits have been most attention-grabbing where it concerns flats in prime locations.<\/p>\n

In fact, transaction figures at or above the million-dollar mark are fast becoming the norm with 87 such transactions in the first five months of 2021 alone.<\/p>\n

So, perhaps unsurprisingly, the government has begun seriously considering countermeasures to stop Singaporeans from profiteering excessively from public housing while it continues to build flats in prime areas, in order to keep our society \u201cegalitarian and inclusive.\u201d<\/p>\n

This time, before deciding to implement a policy, the government has chosen to consult the general public via a comprehensive survey<\/a>. And lo and behold, the questions in the survey actually reveals, in significant detail, what the government could already be planning up their sleeve.<\/p>\n

So let\u2019s get to the chase.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The survey by the Ministry of National Development (MND), titled \u201cPublic Consultation on Public Housing in Prime Locations\u201d, revealed three main ways in which the government is planning to curb the \u201cwindfall effect\u201d in HDB BTOs in prime locations such as the city centre and Greater Southern Waterfront.<\/p>\n

In total, the respondent is presented with 11 \u201cscenarios\u201d in which the windfall effect and equality can be addressed with public housing in prime locations. While the ministry is careful to say that these scenarios are not indicative of the final policies, the specific nature of these scenarios will definitely provide a guide to decision-making in the upcoming months.<\/p>\n

Firstly, the respondent is presented with four scenarios \u201cthat can potentially improve the affordability of new HDB flats in prime locations\u201d.<\/p>\n